General Awareness Questions

Yes, you are requested to write an essay as part of your TOEFL iBT exam. There are 5 major types for TOEFL essay topics. They are:

1. Agree or Disagree

2. Preference

3. Description / Explanation

4. If / Imaginary

5. Compare & Contrast

The best way to prepare for this essay writing is to understand the writing style clearly. To understand the the genre, you can refer some sample essays submitted before by different contestants. You can get such sample TOEFL essays from various sources such as TOEFL training websites, cheap essay writing service sites, online libraries, etc. Once you are well aware of the writing pattern the next thing is to practice writing random essays. Keep in mind that you should practice writing essays of all above mentioned 5 types. If you make it a routine to write random essays, gradually you can compete at higher level to write the given essay topic for your TOEFL iBT exam.

Luanda, the capital of Angola, has topped the list of most expensive cities for expatriates, according to Mercer’s 23rd annual Cost of Living Survey. Hong Kong has acquired 2nd position, followed by Tokyo, Zurich, Singapore, Seoul and Geneva. From India, Mumbai is the most expensive city for expatriates that has ranked 57th on the list, followed by New Delhi (99), Chennai (135), Bangalore (166) and Kolkata (184). The Mercer’s survey includes 209 cities across five continents. The world’s least expensive cities for expatriates, according to Mercer’s survey, are Tunis (209), Bishkek (208) and Skopje (206). Mercer’s authoritative survey is one of the world’s most comprehensive, and is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees.

1. Pinaka is a multi barrel rocket launcher developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for the Indian Army.

2. The system has a maximum range of 40 km for Mark-I and 75 km for Mark-II, and can fire a salvo of 12 rockets in 44 seconds.

3. The system is mounted on a Tatra truck for mobility.

4. Actually, the meaning of Pinaka is Shiv Dhanush.

The 112-feet tall bust of ‘Adiyogi’ Lord Shiva at the Isha Yoga Foundation has been declared the world’s largest bust by the Guinness Book of World Records. The Guinness had announced this on its website. The bust at the Isha Yoga Foundation on the outskirts of Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 24 February.

Wimbledon Tournament in the city London, is the prestigious and the oldest tournament in the world.

The capital of Bangladesh “Dhaka” is the world’s most crowded city with a population density of 44,500 people per square kilometre, released by World Economic Forum (WEF), citing UN Habitat data. According to UN Habitat data, of the top 10 most densely populated cities in the world, six are in Asia, three are in Africa and one is in South America. India’s financial capital Mumbai, home to 31,700 people per square kilometre has acquired second place, where as Kota in Rajasthan with 12,100 people per square kilometre was ranked seventh. Others in the list include Medellin in Columbia (3rd), Manila in Philippines (4th, 14,800), Casablanca in Morocco (5th, 14,200), Lagos in Nigeria (6th, 13,300), Singapore (8th, 10,200) and Jakarta in Indonesia (9th, 9,600).

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) to help develop low-cost lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles.